Asparagus-cutter.



E. w. MOORE. ASPARAGUS CUTTER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 7, I914.

1,137,777, Patented May 4, 1915.

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a ent d y 9 Application filed lsy 7, 1.914. fi crlalgo. 236,908.

To'all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Evnanrr W. Moons,

a citizen of the United States of America residing at Grand Rapids, in the county of 5 Kent and State of Michigan, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Asparagus-Cutters; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to improvements in asparagus cutters, and its ob ect is to provide a device which will be simple and cheap in construction; which will per orm the dellcate operation of cutting the asparagus stalks beneath the surface .of the ground without injuring the same; to provide means by which the operation of cutting the asparagus may be performed while the operator is in a standing posture; to provide means for grip ing and lifting the stalks after they have een severed, and to rovide the device with various new and use 1 fea tures hereinafter more fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of a device embodying this invention, with a part broken out to shorten the figure; Fig. 2 isa front elevation of the lower end of the same; and Fig. 3 is a sectional plan on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Like numbers refer to like parts in all of the figures.

1 represents the staff which is provided at its u per end with a handle 2 and the forwar surface 3 of its lower end is curved and rovided with a similarly curved cutting lade 4 so attached that it may be extended beyond the end of the staff to enter the earth and sever the asparagus stalks beneath the surface thereof.

The extensible cutter 4 is operated by means of a lever 5 ivotally attached near its center to the sta end to the cutter by means of a pin 6 which passes through a slot in the lever and a rod 8 is attached to the o posite end of the lever 5 and this rod exten s upward, being twisted partly around the staff to the rear side thereof and terminates in a hand grip 9 at its upper end which is adjacent the-handle 2 and spaced apart therefrom sufiiciently so that it may be raised to operate the lever 5.

1 and connected at one A spring 10 normall. thrusts the-rod ,8 downward thereby ho dingthe cutteraxin retracted position.

fin ers 11 and 12 are A P pp located above the cutter or the purpose of gripping the as aragus stalks after they have been severe and lifting them from the ground, the finger 11 being a stationary one, preferably formed integral with the clampmg ring 13 which surrounds the staff and is clamped thereon, and the finger 12 is pivotally attached to the said ring and moves relatively to the finger 11, being normally held away therefrom or in 0 en position by means of the s ring 14. A ell crank lever 15 pivoted to t e staff at 16 engages the pivoted finger 12 at one of its ends and its other end is connected to the rod 8 and actuated thereby so that the movement of the rod 8 will operate simultaneously the extensible cutter 4 and the gripping finger 12.

To 0 erate this device, the lower end of the sta with the cutter 4 projecting slightly beyond it, is placed against the surface of the ground near the asparagus stalk to be cut, and the open gripping fingers 11 and 12 are arranged to embrace the said stalk. The rod 8 is then raised by means of the portion 9, which operates the lever 5 and extends the cutter 4 into the earth and by virtue of its curved shape it will move toward the stalks and sever the same from the roots and at the same time the finger 12 will be moved toward the finger 11 to grip the stalks as they are cut and they may then be lifted and placed into a convenient receptacle. By releasin of the gripping member 9, the fingers 11 an 12 separate and release'the stalks and the cutter returns to retracted position.

What I claim is z- 1. An asparagus cutter, comprising a staff having an extensible cutter at its lower end, grippmg fingers on the staff above the cutter, and means for simultaneously actuating the cutter and gripfping fingers from 'the upper end of the sta 2. An asparagus cutter, comprising a staff having a curved surface near its lower end, a correspondingly curved extensible cutter traversably mounted on said surface, gripping fingers on the stafl above the cutter, and means for simultaneously actuating the cutterfiand fingers from the upper end of the sta 3. An asparagus cutter, comprising a staff, an extensible cutter at the lower end of the stafi, a stationary and a pivoted gripping finger above the cutter, a pivoted'lever attached at one end to the cutter, a pivoted bell crank engaging the pivoted finger with one end and a rod attached to the free ends of said lever and bell crank and extending near the upper end of the stafi'.

4, An asparagus cutter, comprising a staff having a curved surface near its lower end and a handle'at its upper end, a curved extensible cutter traversably mounted on said curved surface, a lever pivoted 'to the stafi and connected at one end to said cutter, a

' fixed finger and a pivoted finger above the cutter, said fingers being normally separated tending near the said handle, and a spring 20 to yieldably move the rod downward to release the gripping finger and retract the cutter.

In-testimon whereof I aifix inpresence 0 two witnesses.

" .EVERETT w, MOORE.

my signature Witnesses:

PALMER A. Jones, MAE RANKIN. 

